On the 7th of may last year Stephen O’Malley, Greg Anderson, Attila Csihar, Oren Ambarchi and Sin Nanna gathered for a one-off improv show in Melbourne Australia, and as evident by this recording of the event, the result was quite intense. Sunn O))) — the band that Pentemple is an offshoot to — is really moving in the right direction with their latest releases, last year’s Oracle was brilliant and the permanent addition (it is right?) of Attila Csihar’s haunting voices to their line up has evolved their sound to a less guitar-based approach. What really stands out with this live recording though is the stunning and totally unexpected performance by Sin Nanna — previously known for playing primitive depressive black metal under the moniker Striborg. During the hour-long improv, here divided into two tracks called Pazuzu 1 and 2 (the demon from the The Exorcist movies remember?), he manages to conjure some highly technical and ritualistic drumming that adds a whole new dimension to Sunn O)))’s psychedelic sound, making this Pentemple release most likely the best output of the social sphere of Sunn’ and their many collaborators this year.

Since this album was rather untimely released in the middle of blossoming spring this year, I made sure I saved some of the Darkspace experience knowing well that revenge, champagne and kunsthall releases are all dishes best served cold under the starry starry sky. For new listeners, Darkspace is an ambient black metal project from the artist behind highly acclaimed Paysage d’Hiver. Evidently, Tobias Möckl and fellow Swiss don’t play around when it comes to band names; where PdH is as wintry as a snowball fight between Abbath and a polar bear, Darkspace is every bit the endless interstellar journey the name suggests.

Few bands can make use of subtlety in the wake of an unrelenting guitar attack the way DS does. Delicate synth flares twinkle on top of soaring tremolo riffs and carpet the more chugging passages nicely. This time less effort also is put into spacious ambient passages of Dark Space II, making III a summation of the previous two releases in more senses the mathematical. I have always seen parallels to 90’s-era Emperor in both Darkspace and Paysage d’Hiver. However, the approach of the latter bands is less baroque and ‘more’ minimalist (you might even say tasteful), but the grand crescendos and high-pitch vocals share a certain identity with Emperor’s early classics. If fans of modern techno are interested in a gateway into black metal, look no further than right here.

If we hadn’t already learn to expect the unexpected from Velvet Cacoon it seems that they are indeed coming out with a new release — only one titled neither P aa opal poere p.33 nor Anise royal and not featuring ”2”. The new album will instead be called Atropine (surprise: it’s a drug) and be a 2 cd release. In the vein of the infamous ‘dieselharp’ myth, the band will use drone tracks that were recorded two years ago and has since been buried beneath the earth… An ambient preview track called Funeral Noir was also made available. My tone might be cynical, but the truth is that my faith that the promised olive-flavoured red pill of sedation might actually appear from VC this year is increasing.

This is another Nadja EP from earlier this year that I think really shows how much Aidan’s vocals add to their music. Long Dark Twenties is one long track featuring muddled singing that brings a soft melancholic atmosphere to the entire piece — similar in many ways to their previous cover of Swans’ No cure for the lonely. Also there is a new track up on their myspace called Alien in my own skin that I highly recommend. Finally, for those not yet convinced of Nadja’s excellence here is an independent ‘tube version of Stays Demons:

Earlier this year, Danish artist Nortt returned with another unfreshly dug grave for us all to lie in. One of the most conceptual bands on the Funeral Doom scene, Nortt takes the listener to an otherworld of eerie chimes, haunting riffs and undead vocals. Galgenfrist features some very ethereal guitar work in their trademark ultra-slow fashion and definetely surpasses last years rather disappointing Ligfaerd. Still, none of Nortt’s later efforts have touched the absolute masterpiece that was 1999’s Graven in my eyes, an album whose low production values did nothing to lessen the brill… ahum… darkness of it’s composition. Sadly, Galgenfrist is inconsistent, with some tracks – like my favorite: ”Af Døde”- bringing back the riff-driven style of Graven and Gudsförladt, while others the more ambient-based from Ligfaerd. Also, I get a feeling that Nortt has gone for more of a burial-by-sea atmosphere rather than the usual subterranean mood this time around, most obvious in ”Havet Hinsides Havet”. Though many that are unacquainted with this sort of death-worship will perhaps find it depressive, know that in the nihil void that Nortt projects there should be no sadness or fear, only the comfort of knowing that all is already lost.